


eyes glowing red

by julgru



Category: One Direction (Band), Radio 1 RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, Hand Jobs, M/M, vampire!Harry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-29
Updated: 2014-10-29
Packaged: 2018-02-23 01:55:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 16,811
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2529719
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/julgru/pseuds/julgru
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Nick Grimshaw is only nine years old, his best mate is attacked by a Cyclops. Nick decides that he is going to stop all supernatural beings from walking on the face of planet Earth and ends up finding a secret agency. He signs up as fourteen year old, and has the time of his life. </p><p>Years after that, he is still working at the agency and is assigned a rather easy case - a vampire. What he doesn't know is, that vampires can be extremely sneaky, and very persuasive.</p>
            </blockquote>





	eyes glowing red

**Author's Note:**

  * For [LiliesInIce](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LiliesInIce/gifts).



> hiyaaa! so this fic is written for the lovely LiliesInIce and her amazing prompt; "Nick's been hunting supernatural beings all his life. He doesn't really enjoy it but it pays well. He gets a call that gives him his next target: Harry Styles, a vampire. But this may be the one mission Nick's not going to complete." - all the creds!!
> 
> I'd also like to thank my beta, who's been so supportive and hella amazing through all my stupid spelling mistakes and eye rolling grammar. I won't say any names, but hopefully you know who you are; I owe it all to you. all remaining mistakes are my own!!
> 
> \--warnings at the end--
> 
> enjoy!!

Nick is not really sure how it all started.

Well, he knows _how_ it started.

It had started back when his best friend from school, Ryan, had been captured and killed by a Cyclops, right in front of Nick’s eyes when he was only 9 years old. Nick had sworn to avenge Ryan, and when he turned fourteen years old he found IACS – _International Agency Combat the Supernatural_ – which was a collaboration between Ireland, France, the United States, UK, Spain, Italy, Japan, South Korea as well as some other countries Nick never failed to forget. He got in touch with the responsible party in UK, a young lady who went by the codename Phoenix (Nick later found out that it was her actual name, much to his amusement) and she signed him up to join a team.

Which is all why Nick finds himself, sixteen years later, hiding behind a tree in the deep woods by a small village somewhere outside Aberdeen. He and his team – _Force01_ as they call themselves – have been looking for a banshee who’s been bothering the town’s citizens for two months now, screaming at them in the middle of the night.

Nick looks to his left where Zayn is hiding behind a bush, gun loaded and ready. He can hear Jesy and Liam moving into positions behind him and he checks his watch one last time. 11.58 PM. Two minutes to attack. Leigh-Anne and Jade announce that they’re in position through the earpiece and they all wait for Louis’ command from the basecamp.

“She’s moving towards you, Zayn,” Niall’s voice comes from the earpiece, hushed even though he’s at the camp, probably watching the scene from a computer screen. “Coming from ye right, Nick be ready. She’s all yours.”

“Nick, do not move. And I mean it. Do. Not. Move.” Louis says, voice stern. Nick has a history of ignoring Louis’ orders, but banshees are not a pretty creature to face alone, so he stays put.

“I can see her. Fuck, she’s like proper gorgeous. All curves and that,” Jade whispers.

Leigh-Anne snorts. “I wouldn’t say gorgeous. More like glowing. Literally. She’s glowing.”

“Yeah, why is she glowing?”

“Maybe because she’s a _banshee?_ Christ, Jade.”

“Ladies! Save the chit chat for later, alright? Focus on the task,” Louis says, all serious. Nick rolls his eyes.

“Right. Sorry, Lou,” Jade says, just as Nick catches a small light in the corner of his eye. He nods towards Zayn, who confirms by nodding himself, and Nick holds up his fist and twists it to the twice – the sign for ‘double side attack without shooting’ – an order from Louis before they even began the mission. Zayn confirms again and they both wait for a green light from Louis.

It takes another three minutes before the banshee must be in right position, as Louis shouts a “Now!” into their ears. Nick stands up and steps out from his hiding spot, gun pointed towards the direction of the light he had seen, Zayn on his side. Nick can see Liam and Jesy joining them from his right side, and Leigh-Anne and Jade from behind, surrounding the woman.

The woman is, like Jade said, very pretty, but also very naked. She looks way too smug for someone who’s about to be arrested and put down. (Nick always thought it sounded very animalistic, to put down someone, but then again, they’re doing it to protect people. Phoenix also assured him that it’s a very peaceful procedure, a shot of whatever kills the creature and then it’s done.)

“Stay right where you are, and we won’t have to use violence,” Nick calls out loudly, finger on the trigger in case she plays dirty. She grins, showing off her sharp teeth, hundreds of them. Tilting her head, she looks at him innocently.

“Oh dear. This must be a terrible mistake. I was just ‘aving a night walk.” Her voice is soft but cutting light with a thick Scottish accent. Nick narrows his eyes at her and gestures for Liam to put on the mouth cage. She makes a hissing noise towards him and Nick quickly fires a warning shot on a tree, making them all flinch.

“I will only repeat myself once more. Do as we say and we won’t hurt you,” Nick says and takes a step closer to her. Liam hurries to put on the cage; meanwhile the banshee’s attention is on Nick, this time succeeding. She tries to scream, but the cage is designed to filtrate the loud tones into nothing, making her entirely powerless. Jesy cuffs her swiftly and they all let out a breath of relief. Mission completed.

In the background, Louis’ voice has been steadily rising from calm to not so calm, swearing and huffing right in Nick’s ear. “Fucking hell, Nick! I thought I told everyone _not to shoot._ ” Another string of profanities comes from the earpiece and Nick rolls his eyes. A year ago Louis wouldn’t have known who fired the shot, just that is was fired. Then Perrie was hired, who is one of the most brilliant technicians the team had ever had, aside from Niall. She had invented a new instrument where they could trace which gun had shot, as well as if it hit the wrong person.

“Don’t worry, chief. Everything’s under control,” Nick assures as he secures his gun and glances at his watch. 12.05 AM. Must be a new record. He starts his walkie-talkie and pulls out his earpiece, so that he can still follow any conversation even if he unplugs. During attacks, the walkie-talkie is strictly forbidden, as it’s too loud and could disturb the mission.

They walk back to the basecamp as a group, chatting and laughing, before splitting up and going to whatever hostel or B&B they’ve found to sleep at. Usually they go out for a drink to celebrate, but they’re all knackered and they have a post-mission meeting at eleven AM in London the following day. Well, same now.

Nick opens the door to his room he rented for the week and falls face first on the small bed next to the door. It’s a very small room, about the same size as Nick’s bathroom back in London; nothing but a bed, a chair, a small table and a radio in it.

Nick peels off his working clothes; vest, boots, thick trousers and jumper, all black, and throws them somewhere on the floor. He looks at the clock, which now shows 12.46 AM. He does the math and figures out that he’s got about three hours to sleep before he’s got to catch the train to London. Well, something is better than nothing, he thinks, before letting sleep take over his body.

-

Nick and the others wait outside the conference room, eleven AM on the dot. They’re not allowed to go inside though, IACS have a strict _no leader no anything_ , which is why they always have to wait until Louis arrives. Louis himself is late as usual, talking to a young brunette lady as they walk down the corridor.

“This entire floor belongs to Force01. This here is the conference room, where we will be this morning,” Louis says to the woman, pointing at the door in front of Nick, and winks at him. The little bastard knows how much Nick hates post-mission meetings, and he thrives every time Nick is annoyed.

“My office is the door right down the hall, but I’ll have Liam show you around later, alright?”

The woman nods and writes something down in her notebook. She’s very pretty, even to Nick; thick lips, rich hair and spiking green eyes.

“Anyway. Good morning, team!” Louis chirps as he unlocks the door. He’s way too alert to only have slept a few hours, and Nick sort of hates it.

Nick takes his usual seat around the oval table, between Zayn and Jade. They pull out their notepads where they keep track of what missions they have accomplished. “Before we start, I’d like to introduce my new assistant, Sophia. She will sort out all the administrative work, so whenever you have a new rapport or such done, you will give it to her. Alright?” They mumble out a tired ‘yes, sir’, all of them already half asleep.

Louis continues the meeting with standard measures: deciding who should write the rapport, who should transport the creature to the cellar floor, and of course, whose turn it is to buy biscuits for tea.

“So, onto the next part. Phoenix gave me three new missions for the next two weeks. They’re all small, though, so they won’t take long.” Louis puts a pile of files in the middle of the table, one to each member, as he brings up the basic background facts. Nick takes one and reads the first words on top of it. _Gremlins, East Liverpool, Level: 3_. Blergh. Gremlins are disgusting creatures, about Nick’s least favourites. Not too hard to catch, but proper nasty little things. “I was thinking Jade, Leigh and Niall on that one. Any contradictions?” They shake their heads and Louis writes their names on the whiteboard standing on the ground. It’s brand new, so they haven’t had any time to set it up properly yet.

“Right, next one is here in London. A vampire’s been strolling around the streets, making quite a mess. Phoenix told me specifically to hand it over to Nick, saying that you’re well experienced and all that. Alright?” Nick scans the file briefly. _Vampire, London, Level: 1_. Not quite dangerous then. Nick is definitely alright with that.

Nick looks up from his file, only to see everyone watching him attentively. “Sure, I’m on it.” He shrugs.

“No. No way, Nick,” Perrie interrupts. “You can’t do it alone, you idiot!”

Nick rolls his eyes. Perrie hasn’t been around long enough for individual missions, so Nick sort of understands her. “It’s a level one mission. She’s probably not even dangerous.”

“It says in the file that it’s a male, Nick,” Jesy continues, voice uncertain.

“Male, female, whatever. It’s still a level one. I’ll just tell him to fuck off somewhere else where he’s not bothering us. Send him off to Russia or something. No worries, it’ll be over in a tic.”

“I agree with the girls, Nick. You sure about this?” Zayn says, eyes worried and careful. Nick’s not really sure why they’re all acting like this; last time he did a mission alone it went great. Maybe a few killed cows, but nothing major.

Nick sighs. “Yes. Yes, I am sure. Jeez, if I were you I’d worry more about the Gremlins than this _thing_.”

“Fine, but you’re not going anywhere until I’ve finished the new tracking device I’m working on, okay? It’s a chip and a monitor, and you’re going to use it,” Perrie says, stern. Nick loves her a lot, but good Lord is she overprotective.

Louis clears his throat. “Well, it seems to be settled then. Nicholas, you’re dismissed; I’m sending you out tomorrow already. Perrie, I want the device to be ready by then. Any contradictions?” Nick shakes his head and gathers his file and notepad before leaving the group.

The office is quiet when Nick walks out of the conference room, which isn’t a common event. If Nick were to describe the office, he would say it resembles the set from The Bill – only three proper offices, Perrie and Niall’s shared one, and then Liam’s and Louis’. The rest of the team have their computers and personal belongings behind a loose wooden wall. They all share tables, Nick’s opposite of Zayn, Jade is opposite of Leigh-Anne and Jesy, who used to be opposite of Oliver. He got stuck between a troll and a cave wall three years ago. The desk has been empty ever since.

When Nick gets back from the storage room, the meeting seems to be over. Everyone is back by their desks, preparing for their missions. Liam and Sophia are sitting by the round table in the middle of the office – the tea table as they call it – and are chatting about basic rules in the office. Liam is acting strange though, blushing and stuttering every time Sophia asks a question.

“Ehm, so basically. Louis is the leader of the team, so he’s mainly your boss. I work as assistant field manager, which means if something happens to Louis during a mission, I’ll take his place. Nick, Jade, Leigh, Jesy and Zayn are just field workers, and then we have Niall and Perrie who are technicians. Niall works with the computers and tracking and stuff like that, meanwhile Perrie is the innovative manager, who creates and develops, eh, things,” Liam explains with a small smile, red in the face.

Nick snorts and sits down by his desk, putting his equipment on the floor next to him. “What’s his deal?” He says, nodding towards Liam and Sophia.

Zayn leans back into his chair and smiles, eyes not leaving the computer screen. “Appears like he found himself a new lady.”

“Seems like more than just a lady to me. Christ, he looks like he’s ready to give her his children.”

“Yeah, if we were all that lucky. Perrie refuses to even _talk_ about settling down. Dunno why she hates the idea so much.”

“Maybe she’s not ready to be a mum. You’re still young, y’know.”

“But like marriage? We could get engaged. I’d like to be engaged. Like, if something happens to me during a mission, I’d like to know that I pass being loved,” Zayn almost whispers. It’s clear that he’s put a lot of thinking into it, typical Zayn thing to do.

“Don’t worry, mate. She’d say yes, without a doubt.” Nick smiles, and really. They’ve been together basically since she joined the team. Nick has never seen a couple so strong and natural, all the way from the start.

Zayn smiles back at him and goes back to work, typing on his computer. They work in silence, Nick filling out his next mission application before sending it off to Phoenix. The entire office seems to have calmed down a bit, until Niall sticks out his head from behind the wooden wall, grinning.

“Ey, lads. Up for a pint after work? Liam and Jade are on as well.”

“Nah, I’m good, mate, thanks,” Nick says. “Just feel like having a night in tonight,” he continues.

“Understandable. Anyway, what ‘bout you, mate? You coming tonight?” Niall asks Zayn.

Zayn nods but doesn’t take his eyes of the screen. “Sure, I’m on. Ask Perrie while you’re at it, won’t you?”

“’Course,” Niall says before leaving, probably to go ask Louis as well. “See you later, Nick. Good luck with the mission!”

-

Nick finds himself in a dark, tiny pub in South London, a couple of hours before midnight. It smells of smoke, sweat and booze, and Nick can immediately tell at least six supernatural creatures spread around the tables. They turn towards Nick, eyeing him not so discreetly as he makes his way through to order a pint. He’s obviously not going to drink it, but it’s a good cover.

He sits down on a bar stool next to a curly haired man and nods to the bartender. She rolls her eyes in return, but pours a beer to Nick anyway. Sipping on it, Nick turns around to look over the pub, looking for his person-in-question. The file gave him a vague portrayal of the vampire’s looks; a tall, thin man in about his twenties, dimples, loads of tattoos and piercing green eyes. Nick scans the place, looking for such man, when the person next to him speaks up in a deep, raspy voice.

“You don’t come around here a lot, do you?” The man asks.

Nick turns to him and narrows his eyes. He’s not really in the mood for chit chat, right now. “Not really, no.”

The lad’s quiet after that, drinking his beer slowly. Nick can barely see him, the light’s too low, but his silhouette reminds Nick of the file’s description. “Why?” Nick asks.

“You don’t really smell like someone who’d hang about in these places.” Well, now he’s definitely got Nick’s attention.

“How would you know?” Nick asks, dumbly. _Always let the creature expose themselves to you,_ as the rule goes.

The boy laughs, deep. “You must be quite brave, coming here and all, aren’t you?” He says and takes a few gulps of beer, avoiding Nick’s question. “I know a lot of people in here that wouldn’t hesitate for a second to put their fangs into your neck.”

Nick snorts. “I’m on a steady dose of vervain, doubt I’d taste any good, really.”

The boy turns around towards Nick and, well, that’s definitely a pair of piercing green eyes. He studies Nick for a moment, before laughing again and shaking his head; dimples popping. Nick keeps his face straight, but God isn’t he the prettiest human Nick’s ever seen. It’s quite unfair, seeing as he’s _not a bloody human._

“You’re from the IC, eh, S, whatever, aren’t you?”

“IACS.”

The boy huffs and rolls his eyes. “What did I do this time, then? Scare some children by the park? Upset my landlady by coming home smelling alcohol? Because I do that all the time.”

“You’ve been leaving dead bodies out on open streets.”

“That was once!” The lad exclaims, throwing this hands in the air. “I even apologised to the woman afterwards. And then I compelled her to forget everything. I didn’t mean to scare her.”  

Nick isn’t following at all, probably isn’t meant to either. He’s just about to ask what woman the boy is talking about, when they’re interrupted by a large, muscular man.

“Are there any problems here, Harry?” The man asks, watching Nick with narrowed eyes.

“Nah. ‘S okay, Barney. We were just leaving,” the lad, Harry apparently, says. He pulls out a note and hops down from the bar stool, walking towards the entrance. He only takes a few steps before looking back at Nick, tilting his head. “You coming?”

It takes a few seconds to comprehend that he’s talking to Nick and not Barney The Fucking Buffalo who’s standing right next to him. He nods quickly and sneaks past the man who still looks like he could devour Nick in one bite.

They leave the pub and walks out on the street. It’s almost empty of people, just a group of girls laughing loudly, a couple of drunks going from pub to pub, probably to get even drunker. It’s chilly, and Nick wraps his scarf tighter around his neck, pulling up the zip of his coat to keep the warmth in. Harry hums on a tune that sounds a lot like Bonnie Tyler and Nick forgets for a second what he’s doing.

“So, does this mean you’re turning yourself in?” Nick asks, looking at Harry. Under the dim light of the streetlamps he looks a lot younger than twenty. He could be seventeen or eighteen, for all Nick knows, all long curls and eyelashes.

Harry snorts and shakes his head. “Not really, no. Just enjoying some company. Do you mind?

Oh, hey, what’s your name by the way?” He looks at Nick with wide eyes.

“I’m Nick. And yes, I do. I’m supposed to arrest you and then, well, take care of the problem.” Nick wants to change his mind and say no, wants to say that he likes a bit of company himself, but then again. He’s not doing this to make friends.

“I know, I know. But, like, where’s the fun in that?” Harry says and grins. There is a small hint of a fang coming out, and Nick acts swiftly. He pushes Harry hard against the house wall, catching him by surprise. Harry’s eyes fall shut and he groans in pain as Nick pulls out the chip Perrie gave him, fastening it to the skin behind Harry’s right ear.

“Don’t do that again,” Nick orders. Harry opens his eyes slowly, frowning slightly. Nick takes a few steps backwards, releasing the pressure against Harry’s body. A tension Nick wouldn’t describe as pleasant breaks out between them, quiet and still around them. Harry is looking at him, studying him thoroughly as if Nick just told him that the sun is just an illusion or something. He blinks a few times before moving towards Nick again.

“May I show you something?” Harry asks, alarmingly close to Nick. His eyes flick over Nick’s face, and Nick has to look the other way to keep himself from staring back at Harry.

“Actually, no. You may not. I’ve already outstayed my visit here. Although, you may follow me to my office, where we could have a nice little chat about what country we should send you off to, because here? Not good.” When Nick looks back at Harry, he’s smirking, all smug and way too pretty for Nick’s amusement.

“See you around, Nick,” Harry says, and in the next second, he’s gone.

-

By the time Nick gets into the office the following day, he is fuming with rage. Not only because Harry ran out on him before Nick could grasp what happened, but also because his coffee machine broke and he hasn’t had his morning coffee yet. Nick’s not at all in the mood for being in the office right now, but he’s got paperwork to do, and he might as well pick up some vervain shots while he’s still here.

The office is almost empty of people, more than half the lot away on missions. The only ones left are Liam and Jesy, as well as Sophia somewhere in the office. It’s quiet, though, which Nick always appreciates.

When he logs into his computer, he’s got thirteen new unread emails. None of them are particularly important, they never are, but Nick likes to know he’s not missing anything.

“Oh, hi, Nick. Didn’t see you there,” Liam’s voice comes from behind. Nick hums and continues to scroll through his email. “How did it go yesterday?”

“Oh, great. Great. Just fine,” Nick lies. When Louis isn’t in, Liam is the one in charge, which makes him fully capable of adding people into a mission. That, and also the fact that Liam is about ninety-four percent puppy, always worried about everyone and everything, so if he found out that Nick wasn’t doing alright Nick would have to drag someone with him tonight. Which Nick wants even less than doing paperwork - about _not at all._

“Sounds amazing, mate,” Liam says and fiddles with a loose straw on his jumper. They’re quiet for a while, until Liam speaks up again. “So what do you think about Sophia?” He asks.

When Nick looks at Liam, he is bright pink and avoiding Nick’s eyes. “She’s alright, I guess. Haven’t spoke to her, really, seeing as she started yesterday. Why?”

“Nah, no reason,” Liam says, which is very obviously a lie. Liam is the worst liar ever, Nick knows this after about seven years of working together. It’s adorable, really. “I just. She’s quite pretty, isn’t she?”

Nick raises an eyebrow. “Brilliant observation there, mate,” Nick teases. “She’s a very lovely looking woman, I’d say, yes.”

Liam’s face lightens up. “Do you think she likes me?”

“Well, you’re quite hard not to like, darling,” Nick says.

“I think I’m gonna ask her out sometime. There’s this new Avengers movie coming out, we could go see that, yeah? Do you think she likes superheroes? Probably not, she seems more like a thriller kind of girl. Maybe we’ll just rent The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo or something. Think she’d like that?”

“Well, you really do know how to woo someone, Payne,” Nick mumbles.

Liam just grins.      

 

 

Nick’s monitor beeps as he rounds the corner of a park, the big white dot getting closer to Nick’s smaller one. He flicks it off and puts it in his bag, doesn’t want the beeping to disturb his work.

The park is mostly dark, only a couple of streetlamps illuminating the narrow path up the hill. The chilly post-winter wind is beginning to thin out, but Nick still wishes he’d put on a scarf before leaving the office. Maybe a pair of gloves as well; his fingers are aching from holding the monitor all the way from the office to the park.

Nick checks the outer pocket of his bag to make sure he hasn’t dropped the shots of vervain and jogs up the height of the hill, where a familiar silhouette is sitting on a park bench. He’s already out of breath when he reaches the top of the slope, and before he has any time to catch up a raspy, cheerful voice speaks up.

“Oh, hi, Nick!” Harry grins widely. “I was just wondering when you’d show up.”

“So this was planned, then?” Nick pants. Harry doesn’t answer, instead he pats the seat next to him, still smiling at Nick.

“Just thought it’d be really pretty up here,” Harry explains.

Nick dumps his bag onto the ground next to the bench. He sits down next to Harry, and decides that he needs the bag much closer to him if they’re going to stay here, which they probably are. “Would be much prettier if I didn’t have to climb bloody Mount Everest first,” Nick complains, placing the bag on the space next to him instead.

Harry laughs at that, the smooth, deep laugh Nick remembers so vividly. “You humans are so whiny,” he says, making Nick roll his eyes

They’re quiet after that, the only sound being the wind blowing in the tree tops. Nick tries to decide whether he should use one dose of vervain or two; Harry seems like fairly strong vampire, but not as experienced as the ones Nick has met before. He has no idea how old Harry is, neither physically nor mentally, but he decides that one shot should be sufficient to make him weak enough for Nick to bring him in.

“Can I tell you a story?” Harry asks. He isn’t looking at Nick, staring out over the dark grass of the park. It’s not really as much of a view as Nick had thought when jogging up the hill, only a few trees and loads of grass.

“It was during World War I, yeah? When I became a vampire,” Harry continues when Nick doesn’t answer. “UK decided to try a new super warrior weapon thing, in response to the chemical weapons the German army used against France. They selected about fifty young men to test their ‘theory’ as they called it, I was one of them, and then they injected some fluid into our bodies. Twelve of the men didn’t even survive the night.”

Harry sounds sad, and Nick promptly wonders if Harry had any mates that didn’t survive the transformation. Nick is well aware how one becomes a vampire; just a few drops of vampire blood into the system and the cells of the heart get mutated, making it stop beating but still providing the brain with blood. _It’s bit more complicated than that_ , Louis always claims, but Nick doesn’t bother with the _how’s,_ really.

“Anyway. When I woke up I had this pounding headache, everything was too bright and too loud, almost like a really bad hangover. I remember the air smelling really sweet and I was _starving_. I asked one of the scientists if he could bring me some food and he just laughed at me. I don’t really remember so much after that, it’s all very blurry, but I remember the training they put us through. They trained us to walk in sunlight without showing pain, they taught us to control our strength and speed, to use it to our advantage, and then they forced us to attack and drink other people’s blood. It was then that I first realised that they had turned us into vampires.”

Harry snorts at the memory and shakes his head. Nick finds himself genuinely intrigued by the story, and his cold heart aches a tiny bit at Harry’s pained expression. He’s still avoiding Nick’s gaze, now facing the ground, making his curls drop in front of his eyes.

“What happened then?” Nick asks, swallowing hard. Harry looks over to him and smiles. It’s not a very convincing smile, but a smile nonetheless.

“I fled when they told us what we were meant to do. I didn’t want to kill people. I didn’t want to do any of it,” Harry laughs and shakes his head again. “S’ a bit ironic, don’t you think?”

That makes Nick laugh as well, because yes, that is very ironic. A vampire not wanting to kill people, that is definitely a first for Nick.

When the laugher and snickers dies out, Nick’s brain catches up with him. “Why are you telling me this?”

Harry’s eyebrows raise, looking fairly surprised by Nick’s question. “I dunno. I guess I just wanted to tell anyone. I sort of, you know, never have before.”

Nick frowns. If Harry were there during World War I, he must be at least one hundred years old, plus the years he lived without being a vampire. “So what, you waited all these years, just so you could tell a man you met for like an hour the prior day? You’re a strange child, Harry.”

“Styles,” Harry adds.

“I’m sorry?”

Harry shrugs. “‘M name’s Harry Styles. In case you, uh, wondered.” Harry actually blushes at that, which is a something Nick never thought he’d see a vampire doing. That is sort of the thing with vampires, they don’t have any blood circulation, which is why they’re pale and so, so cold.

“Why, thank you for that marvelous piece of information, _Harry Styles_. I feel so terribly enlightened!” Nick mocks. Harry laughs again, he seems to do that a lot, and Nick’s heart does a little flippy thing in his chest. Which means nothing at all, pfft, he just really loves making people laugh.

“So what’s your story then? Why are you doing the entire IACS thing-y?” Harry asks when he’s done laughing.

“It’s a good pay. Risking my life and all that, you know,” Nick says and shrugs. Harry tilts his head, silent. Nick sighs. “I also had a mate, my only mate basically, who was killed by a supernatural creature, so decided to dedicate my entire life to stop that from happening to someone else,” he continues, because obviously this mission has become more of a bad, sentimental tragedy than actual work.

“I’m so sorry, Nick,” Harry says quietly. He sounds so genuine, almost choked up about it, as if Ryan was Harry’s mate too and that he just found out about it. “Was it a vampire who- you know? You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.” He rushes out the last part, serious.

Nick snorts and rolls his eyes. He’s barely thought about Ryan for years, really. “Shut up. No, it was a Cyclops and he was disgusting.”

Harry hums. He doesn’t say anything for a while, looking thoughtful. He is fiddling with a silver cross necklace that is hanging around his neck, pulling the charm back and forward through the chain.  

“‘M not like that though,” Harry says, voice still sounding small and upset. “‘M not a bad person. You know that, right?” He continues.

Which is, well. Nick doesn’t know that. He’s only known Harry for a couple of hours, talked with him even less. That doesn’t stop him from having to do his job, though, doesn’t stop him from having to send Harry away. Nick’s chest feels tight for a second and he clears his throat.

“I know, Harry. But I, you know we-”

“No, no, no,” Harry interrupts, eyes pleading. “Just wait. Give me, like, one week, tops.”

“One week to what?”

“To show you that I’m not a problem that has to be dealt with.”

Nick has bad feeling about Harry’s idea; he’s probably going to get in loads of trouble with Louis if he drags out the mission for too long. Yet, Nick can’t pass up a good time to mess with Louis, never has and never will. “Alright, but you’ve already used two days out of seven. You have five days to impress me.”

Harry’s face lights up, eyes shining and mouth breaking out in a grin as big as the Atlantic Ocean. “Thank you, thank you, thank you!” He rants, leaning forward to wrap his arms around Nick. Harry squeezes Nick so tightly he can barely breathe for a moment, and he is just about to reach for a vervain shot when Harry pulls back. “You won't regret it, I promise.”

“Well, good. But don't do that again, alright?” Nick breathes, rubbing a sore spot on his arm. “I have a low pain-tolerance and you’re quite strong in case you didn’t know.”

Harry laughs, smile blinding white in the darkness of the night.

-

Nick wakes up to the sound of his phone ringing, too loud and too early. The room is bright for a morning in March, every day becoming a little longer than the other. Nick’s body feels well rested and relaxed despite the early hour and he can already tell it’s going to be a good day.

Nick stretches out in the bed, his knees and back making a cracking noise that Nick would be embarrassed over most times, but he can’t bring himself to care this morning. He sits up and reaches for his phone, answering without checking the ID.

“Nick Grimshaw.”

“Morning, Nicholas. It’s Louis,” Nick hums, running a hand through his assumingly horrible bed head. “Just checking how the mission is going for you. Liam said you seemed out of it.”

“No worries, chief. Got everything under control,” Nick says, voice rough and scratchy from sleep. He pads out of his bedroom and into the kitchen, putting the kettle on, since his coffee machine still doesn’t want to work, before reaching for his favourite cup on the counter. The air of the flat is cold against Nick’s bare skin, not wearing anything but pants.

“Good to hear. If there’s any troubles, I’ve put Liam and Jesy on office duty all week. They’d help you in a heartbeat, you know,” Louis says. There is noise in the background, a sort of rumbling Nick chooses to ignore.

“Thanks, but it won’t be needed. Bye,” Nick says, reaching for a blanket that’s hanging over a kitchen chair. Louis stutters out an ‘Okay, eh, bye then’, and Nick hangs up without further adieu.

Nick puts his phone on the counter and goes to grab milk from the refrigerator for his tea. When he opens the fridge, though, it’s almost completely empty; the only things there are a bottle of cheap merlot and left-overs from God knows when. Which, is totally fine. Nick can drink his tea without milk.

Nick closes the fridge and goes to get bread for toast instead. He opens his pantry cabinet, which turns out only having his tea bags, some müsli and five ounces of cinnamon.

Nick groans, but takes out the tea bags and müsli nevertheless. He pours himself a cuppa and a small bowl of müsli, eating it dry. The oatmeal is a bit chewy and the fruits are rock hard, so Nick dumps it in the bin after only a few spoons, huffing in annoyance.

 

 

Tesco’s is quite busy when Nick comes in, his shopping list and wallet in hand. He grabs a basket and heads straight for the dry foods department. He picks out two loaves of bread, a new müsli, some biscuits for tea and pasta for lunch, before quickly moving onto the milk and eggs.

Nick is just about to grab his favourite cheese out of the cold shelf thing, when he hears a friendly voice behind, his heart skipping a beat.

“Oh, hi, Nick!” Harry chirps. Nick turns around, surprised and a tad confused. Harry is smiling widely, eyes crinkled. He looks different in the light of the day; he’s got a bigger face than Nick had caught on before and tattoos peeking out of his t-shirt. His mouth is a deep pink colour, all plump and pretty. Harry has also put up his hair in a bun, bringing out his face and wide eyes.

“What are you doing here, Harry?” Nick whisper-yells, taking a step closer to him. Last time Nick checked, vampires weren’t really that keen on the concept of _daylight_.

Harry’s smile falters, and he looks baffled. “Uh, just picking up some eggs for my landlady.” He holds up a big packet of eggs. “She’s hosting some bingo-quiz thing and she needed ingredients for baking. Why?”

Harry licks his lips, and Nick has to tighten every muscle in his entire body to stop himself from looking. “Well, it’s sunny out, and you are a _vampire_ , in case you’ve forgotten,” Nick snorts. “Pardon me for being a bit surprised to see you here.”

Harry lets out a giggle, eyes crinkling again. “Oh yeah. Remember when I said they trained us to walk in sunlight? Turns out it’s handy even outside of warzones,” Harry says, winking. “Walk with me?” He asks.

Nick nods, grabbing his cheese before turning towards the cashiers. They pass the entire fruit area without speaking, neither of them having anything to say. Nick thinks about grabbing some apples, but then again, the müsli he picked has coconut and peach bits in it, so that should be enough fruit-stuff.

“Nick?” A light, sharp voice comes from Nick’s side, making his blood turn ice cold and his stomach drop. Nick must have caught some curse last time he dealt with a witch; everyone seems to run into Nick at the worst times, honestly. “Morning, love,” Jesy chimes.

Nick turns and plasters a smile on his face. “Well, hello, darling,” he says, planting a kiss on her cheek. “How are you this morning?”

“I’m well, thank you. Drew the wrong card and had to pick up biscuits for tea, though. And you?” Jesy puts her basket on the floor, smiling prettily.

“I’m very good, love, thank you,” Nick answers. Jesy looks behind Nick, spotting Harry, and she raises her eyebrows with a smirk. “So, who’s this?”

Harry steps forward, putting out his hand for her to shake. “Hi, I’’m Har-”

“-rriet’s son, Stephen,” Nick interrupts, slamming his hand on top of Harry’s before Jesy can touch him. It’s freezing, sending a shiver through Nick’s body. “You remember Harriet, don’t you, Jesy? Cousin Harriet? She’s the one who got breast implants as a birthday gift from her mum and dad. Don’t tell your mother I said that, Stephen, but it’s true. Horrible memory for her, must be. I also caught her crying at that zombie movie we used to watch as kids. She strongly denied that though, probably still does, and you probably shouldn’t tell her this either, but it’s true. Very true, actually.” Nick is almost completely out of breath after his ranting. Harry is giving him the strange eye, but nods slowly.

“Oh, sorry, but I don’t remember any Harriet,” Jesy says. She looks suspicious as well, but doesn’t seem like she wants to push the issue in the middle of a supermarket.

“It’s alright. I’ve only mentioned her name once or twice anyway.” Nick laughs nervously.

“So what are you doing in London, Stephen?” Jesy asks, smiling tightly at Harry.

“Uhm, I’m, uh,” Harry trails off, frowning at Nick.

“He’s only here for the night. He’s going off to sweet little US tomorrow, aren’t you? Many adventures await, and all that. Big traveler, this kid,” Nick breathes.

Harry nods again, more firmly this time. “Yeah, I’m. Yeah.”

Jesy looks at Harry, then at Nick, then back at Harry, blinking. Nick’s breath catches in his throat and he swallows quickly. “Actually, we have to head out. Like, now I’m afraid. See you later, love,” he says, kissing her once more on the cheek before grabbing Harry’s arm and dragging him along. Shit, shit, shit.

“What the fuck was that?” Harry whispers when they’ve rounded the corners of the crisps and candy shelves.

“That was my bloody co-worker,” Nick whispers back, looking frantically around the market. “As in _she also hunts supernatural beings._ ”

Harry’s breath catches, realization kicking in. “Does she know I’m a vampire?”

“I don’t bloody know! You should be happy there wasn’t a picture of you in the file I got, or both of us would be done for.” Nick takes the eggs out of Harry’s hand and puts them in his basket, placing it on the floor behind a shelf. He walks fast towards the cashiers and the exit, a half running-trotting Harry behind.

“What about the eggs?” Harry says, voice almost pleading.

Nick huffs, eyes on the door out to the parking lot. “Pick them up later. We can’t be here right now.”

They make their way out of the building and Nick unlocks his car from a distance. They pile into it and Nick starts the engine and drives off, several honks from cars behind him. Nick lets out a breath as they pull out onto the road, gas pedal against the floor as it feels like.

“Sorry about that,” Nick says. “Just had a bit of a moment, I guess. Didn’t really want her to catch on to who you are.”

Harry doesn’t answer for a while, but when he does, Nick barely hears his voice. “It’s alright. I understand.”

-

Nick doesn’t see Harry until two days later, when he is walking back to his flat after getting his curry. Usually, he’d order it delivered to his flat, but he was bored and nothing was on the telly anyway, so he might as well get it himself.

Nick is just rounding the corner of a bike shop, only a few blocks from his flat, when he sees two dark silhouettes stumbling out of a pub, loud and probably very drunk. Nick immediately recognizes one of the silhouettes, and groans to himself. He is about eighty-six percent sure Harry has some kind of Nick-radar, because one coincidence, sure, but this. Not possible.

Nick approaches the two men, since there is no other way to his flat, really. Harry is clinging to the other man, a big, muscular man with even bigger hair than Harry. He is giggling, pressing his face into Big Man’s neck, who is steadily holding Harry up.

As they get closer to each other, Harry spots Nick and promptly pushes himself off Big Man, stumbling a bit forward. “Nick! Nicky, hi,” he slurs, giggling even more. “I’m so dr-, oh, you know who this is, Nick?”

Nick clears his throat, standing opposite of the Big Man, who is looking at him with narrowed eyes and raised eyebrows. “No, I don’t, I’m afraid,” Nick says. The man’s big hair looks suspicious, which is making Nick’s inner supernatural alerts set off. He doesn’t need to look long before, oh, yep. Those are definitely two horns there.

“Well, Nick, this is Buffy,” Nick snorts. Incredibly suiting name, that is. “Buffy, this is Nick. He’s the one I talked to you about.”

“Very lovely to meet you, Buffy,” Nick says. Nick’s stomach grumbles loudly and he realises how hungry he is. “Although I think I’ve got to get going. Another time, yeah?”

Harry pouts. “No, come join us. We’re getting drunk.”

“You’re already drunk,” Nick points out. Vampires don’t get drunk a lot; don’t really get drunk at all. Their bodies don’t consume the alcohol, which means that they can drink four bottles of pure vodka without feeling the slightest buzz. How Harry is drunk, is a mystery Nick could grumble on all the way to his grave.

“But I want to be drunker. Please, Nick,” Harry pleads. He is now touching Nick, breathing hotly into Nick’s neck. Buffy looks right murderous.

“Maybe you should just go home. Sleep it off, yeah?” Nick tries to push Harry off, doesn’t want to be risked getting bitten.

“Have no home. ‘M landlady kicked me out this morning when she watched me feed off her cat,” Harry mumbles. “Compelled her to forget it, but left anyway.”

Nick sighs and rolls his eyes. There are loads of things he could be doing right now, like watching sitcoms or cooking shows. He could have made his own bloody curry in this time, and then he could have taken a long shower before crawling into bed. Instead, he makes a decision he probably is going to regret the moment he says it. “Come home with me then,” Nick whispers, a mouth full of greasy curls. “Can’t have you roaming the streets with some stranger now, can I?”

Harry’s face lights up. “Yeah, I’d-. Please,” he says, blinking. He turns to Buffy, who’s been observing them the entire time, watching Nick as if he would snap his neck any time.

“I’m gonna head home with Nick, but it was really nice meeting you, Buffy,” Harry says. “Maybe I’ll see you around?” Harry plants a short kiss on Buffy’s cheek, making Nick roll his eyes again.

“Whatever,” Buffy says, before walking off. He pauses when he’s standing by Nick. “Cockblock,” he whispers, just loud enough for Nick to hear. Nick frowns, but doesn’t miss the way Harry’s face scrunches up, as if _‘ew, never’_. Vampire hearing, and all.

They’re home about ten minutes later, which is about ten minutes longer than Nick usually would have taken, due a very drunk vampire’s inability to walk properly. “Menace,” Nick groans as he is unlocking the door to his flat.

If Nick had known he was going to have people over, he probably would have cleaned up a bit. It's not too messy, that's not in his nature, but there are a few of Nick’s clothes scattered around the hall as well as some dishes in the sink.

Nick watches Harry as he peels off his coat and hangs it on a hook, kicking off his shoes before entering the flat properly. “It's nice. Cosy. I like it,” Harry says, looking around.

Nick walks into the kitchen with his curry, putting it in the microwave to heat it up a bit. “D’you fancy a cuppa, there?”

“Only if you’re having, thanks,” Harry’s voice comes from what Nick assumes is the living room. Nick pours some water into the kettle and presses the on button, listening to it boil as he takes down two cups and the tea bags from his cabinet.

“I’ve only got some green tea, is that alright?” Nick calls over his shoulder as he hears footsteps enter the kitchen behind him.

“Sure. It’s alright,” Harry says, coming up by Nick’s side. “I really like your home,” he adds.

“Thanks,” Nick says. He likes his home as well, loves to show it off to people. Nick has worked on it for years, trying to get the personal home vibe, even if he’s not in the flat for about two thirds of the year.

They’re silent after that, making their tea side by side. The microwave plings and Nick takes his food out, pouring it out on a plate. He swallows about half of it in one go, starving, and Harry laughs at him. It’s not as bad as Nick thought it would have been; Harry already seems to have sobered up a bit. He’s still swaying a bit, but as long as he’s not puking his guts up all over Nick’s flat or whatever vampires do when they’re drunk, it’s alright.

 

 

They end up on the sofa after that, watching Nick’s old reruns of American animated series. It’s not long before Nick feels himself starting to doze off, and when he looks Harry’s way, he’s doing the same.

“I guess you’re sleeping here, then,” Nick mutters, not really expecting an answer from Harry. “I’m gonna go and get some blankets and pillows for you, alright? Don’t go anywhere.”

Harry mumbles something inaudible, and Nick rises from the couch, shaking his head.

“No, no, Nick, wait,” Harry says louder, voice hoarse and thick from what Nick guesses is exhaustion. Vampire hangovers seem to be like everything else vampiristic; heightened and intense. “Could I perhaps, uh, sleep with you? Maybe?”

Which is. Well.

If Nick had been paying attention in basically every risk training he’s had in his life, he’d never, ever let a vampire into his bed. Not even into his home. This particular vampire, on the other hand, has almost done both of them, within the space of an hour. It’s all been too easy, really. It worries Nick, when he thinks about it, but he just can’t bring himself to care - which probably should worry him even more.

“Yeah. Come on then,” Nick says, throat tight. So many things could go wrong, but there is no backing out now.

Harry is still half asleep though, as they make it to Nick’s bedroom, so Nick practically has to carry him on his shoulder through the entire flat. He dumps Harry on his bed, helping him with tugging his jeans off. They’re bloody tight, almost like a second skin, but Harry doesn’t seem to mind, sighing happily.

When Harry is stripped down enough to sleep in, Nick peels off his joggers and climbs into the bed next to him. It’s not the first time he’s shared a bed with someone, of course, has done with almost everyone from the team several times before. Still, he feels awkward, lying there under the covers of his huge bed, almost two feet away from Harry. It’s an alright distance though, he tells himself; he’s not in the risk of getting bitten at least.

Harry seems to have other opinions though, because he slides closer to Nick, murmuring something about body heat and feeling strange. Harry puts his head on Nick’s chest, huffing out small breaths on his neck. Nick’s heart speeds up, and he’s not sure if it’s because of the mouth-with-potential-fangs-close-to-neck-with-blood situation going on, or the fact that he will without a doubt let it continue.

“You don’t have to be scared, Nick.”

“I’m sorry?

“I can hear your heart, you know,” Harry whispers. The room is dark, but Nick can literally feel Harry’s frown.

“I’m aware, yes.” Nick replies, feeling utterly pathetic.

Harry’s quiet for a while, before he speaks up again. “I’m not a monster, Nick. Tell me you know that, please,” he pleads, head shifting on Nick’s shoulder.

“I know,” Nick lies. They’ve done this before, said the exact same things, and nothing has changed since.

“Do you though?” Harry asks, backing away from Nick a bit. Nick looks down at him, Harry’s eyes glowing slightly. Most people would probably have been scared when facing two shiny, green eyes, but Nick knows it’s just Harry’s night vision kicking in, so it doesn’t bother him. “I can smell the vervain shots lying in your bag in the hall. I could smell them when I met you in the park. I can smell it in your blood system right now.”

“Harry, I-”

“It’s okay. I get it. You’re supposed to be hunting me, you need your safety to be secured. Of course,” Harry says. He sounds a lot more awake than he did just a moment ago, even if his voice still is a bit throaty.

Nick doesn’t have an answer for that, so he stays silent.

“Remember that woman I talked about? When we first met?” Harry asks. Nick does, clear as day. Nick had meant to question him on the matter, but didn’t get the opportunity to do it. “Her name was Heather. American, she was. I killed her boyfriend.”

Nick stays quiet.

“I didn’t mean to, of course. Heather was the first friend I’ve had in decades. She didn’t know about my secret, I thought she was way too delicate for that. She wasn’t though. She was a proper rebel. Never listened to anyone or anything. Went her own way. That’s what I liked about her,” Harry huffs out a laugh, shaking his head. “Anyway. I ran into a man one night. He was drunk and admitted that he had murdered his mother, and that he didn’t want to go to prison. I hadn’t fed off a human for years at the time, so I saw my chance and I took it. Heather caught us, and I fled the scene. I went back and compelled her to forget everything, it was the right thing to do. I just- I haven’t seen her since.”

Nick swallows and looks away from Harry’s eyes. He never knows what to say in situations like this, even if he does know what it feels like to lose a friend. “I’m sorry,” he settles with.

“I’m alright. I just-” Harry pauses and lets out a frustrated breath. “I need you to know that I never meant to hurt anyone. I didn’t. I don’t.”

“Yeah. I know.”

-

When Nick wakes up the next morning, Harry is still asleep next to him, breathing heavily. He looks relaxed, his face completely slack. His curls are sprawled all over his pillow, so long they reach all the way to Nick’s pillow as well. It’s actually not bad, sleeping next to him. Maybe Nick doesn’t regret his decision to bring Harry home after all.

Nick turns away from Harry and checks his phone. He’s got a text from Louis telling Nick he wants him at the office as soon as possible, sent an hour and a half ago. Nick considers ignoring it for another hour or so, when another text pops up, this time from Zayn.

_oi mate head 2 the office louis sounded upset_

Nick frowns but gets out of bed nonetheless, throwing one more glance at Harry. It’s probably rude to leave without telling him, but Nick doesn’t want to wake him either. He decides on writing a note and putting it on the pillow, before sneaking into the bedroom for a piss.

 

 

Nick arrives at the office forty minutes later, two fresh take away coffees in hand, one for Nick and one for Louis. He always brings an extra cup, even if he knows that Louis despises coffee, just to see the annoyed look on Louis’ face. There is no better way to start the day, really.

When he gets in, though, the entire team just sort of quiets down when they see him. They share looks with each other that Nick’s never seen in his one and a half decade of working at IACS, and if his face heats up a bit, well, he wouldn’t try to deny it.

Zayn walks up to him, a wary look on his face. “That’s for Louis, isn’t it?” He says and nods towards the coffees. “I wouldn’t do that today, Nick. Think he’s had a proper shit week and I doubt he’s feeling very playful.”

Nick rolls his eyes. Zayn and his bloody morals. Always being the most decent human being Nick’s ever met - literally. “Yeah, alright. You want it then? My treat,” Nick says and hands over the two cups to Zayn, without waiting for an answer. Zayn smiles and moves out of the way so Nick can get to Louis’s office. He knocks on the door, waiting for the “Come in,” before entering.

Louis’ office looks like it always has, except for the files and papers lying _everywhere_. They’re in piles on his desk, on chairs, in boxes, scattered over the floor. Louis himself is hysterically searching for something, flipping page by page out of a file.

“Morning, Nick,” Louis says without looking up, voice tight. He gestures Nick to sit down on the chair opposite of him, closing his file and putting it on top of a pile.

“Everything good, chief?” Nick asks as he takes his seat. Louis grunts and looks at Nick, dark circles under his eyes. His fringe is standing right up, as if he’s been running his hand through it all morning. Nick guesses that he probably has.

“Honestly, Nicholas, look around,” Louis sighs and runs his hand through his hair. Well, that was confirmed fast.

“What happened?” Nick doesn’t really know why he’s here, so it’s best to ask easy questions at first.

Louis sighs again. “Apparently the Ogre had a couple of friends that we didn’t know about, so we have to wait until the others are done with their Gremlins before we can head up north again.” Louis pauses to pick up another file from the floor and starts flipping it through. “I also have to change the file, but I can’t bloody _find it_.” He emphasizes the last words by gritting his teeth, jaw clenched.

“So, you want me on the Ogre case as well? ‘S that why I’m here?”

Louis clears his throat and shakes his head. “No, no,” he says. “I needed to check that your case is doing alright. Is it?”

“You called me yesterday morning,” Nick says. Honestly, nothing has changed since he called, except from the fact that Harry slept in his bed.

Louis raises his eyebrow. “Yes, and you hung up on me.”

“You said bye!” Nick complains.

“That doesn’t mean I was done talking to you!” Louis complains right back.

Nick gives Louis his best bored-stare. Nick might have hung up the phone rather quickly, but to his defense Louis had woken him, and Nick was busy with other stuff. Morning stuff.

“None of that, Nicholas. You look like a child, which you are not.” Nick tries to look offended, but Louis just rolls his eyes. “Anyway. I asked you here today because I wanted to know how far you’ve come. So, how far have you come?”

Nick swallows. “Well, eh, he’s- it turns out he’s easy to track but hard to catch,” he lies. He probably would have been able to catch Harry at least a dozen times during the last few days.

Louis frowns. “That so? But you still don’t want any help? Zayn’s back now if you prefer him over Liam.”

“Like I said over the phone, it won’t be necessary. Give ‘em some time off instead. Probably been working their balls off, the poor things,” Nick says, putting on a sad face and shaking his head slowly.

Louis narrows his eyes. “Stop that,” he hisses, looking proper cross now. “They knew it was a twenty-four hours a day job when they applied. So did you.”

“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean they couldn’t stay home for a day or two. Get some proper rest and that.”

“No!” Louis raises his voice. “And don’t try to change the subject, Nick. It’s not about them, now.”

Nick’s face heats up. Louis yells at Nick a lot, and it’s never bothered him before, but this time a twinge of guilt settles in his chest. “I’m sorry,” Nick mutters.

“Good.” Louis takes a deep breath to calm himself down. “And I want him in by tomorrow night, or I’ll send the entire team to catch him. Do you copy?” He continues, stern.

“Eh, so like, um, who are we talking abou-”

“I said, _do you copy?_ ”

Nick breathes in defeat. He knows there is no point of trying to fight Louis on this. Louis is the leader, and can basically do whatever he wants, including sending out the complete Force01 after Harry. Nick shivers just thinking about it, and he tries not to think of the reason why.

“Alright then. Tomorrow night. Got it,” Nick says, and he has to swallow a lump forming in his throat. He doesn’t want to think about how he’s going to break the news to Harry, what he’s going to say to him, but his traitorous brain does it anyway. Nick’s chest hurts for a second, and he has to bite his lip to keep it from trembling. “Can I leave?”

“You’re dismissed. You can leave,” Louis says, and Nick leaves without another word.

 

 

When Nick gets home, he’s been running through what he’s going to tell Harry about seventeen times. First he considered not saying anything and letting the team take him, but he quickly shot that idea away. That wouldn’t be fair at all.

Nick is met with a smell of coffee and bacon when he opens the door to the flat, a low sound the radio. He shrugs off his coat and kicks off his shoes, standing in the hall for a couple of minutes, just breathing in the scent of breakfast. Nick only had a quick toast before leaving earlier, and his stomach rumbles with obvious hunger.

“Oh, hi!” Harry greets Nick when he walks into the kitchen, all wide smile and ruffled curls, wearing only pants and his t-shirt from the previous night. He’s got tattoos scattered all over his right arm, dark ink beautifully in contrast with pale skin. “Where have you been? You weren't there when I woke up.”

He doesn't have to define _where_ , Nick knows exactly what he means. “Just went to the office for a bit. You slept well?”

“As if I was dead.” Harry winks, making Nick roll his eyes and groan. “And you? I didn't bother you too much, did I?”

“Not at all,” Nick says, sitting down by the kitchen island. He doesn't mention that it was probably the best night’s sleep he’s had in ages. Because that’s, well. Totally irrelevant to the matter. “What’re you making?” He asks instead.

“Cheese and bacon toasts with beans on top. You didn’t have any beans, though, so I took pickles instead,” Harry answers, just as he is turning to face Nick, two plates with toasts in hand. “There’s water in the kettle, if you want tea. I tried to work out the coffee machine, but I didn’t know how to do it.”

“Yeah, it’s broken. But thanks anyway.” Nick smiles, before taking a bite of the sandwich. It tastes a bit strange with pickles, but the bacon is heavenly made, all crispy and salty. “So, care to tell me how you, a vampire, were able to get drunk last night? Even more, how you’re not groaning over headaches and puking your guts out after that obvious overindulgence of yours?”

Harry snorts, shrugging. “Buffy gave me a potion of something that would do something so I could drink. Didn’t really ask what or why, I just wanted to get sloshed.”

“Which you definitely did.”

Harry laughs a bit, before taking another bite of his toast, tongue out first. “Haven’t been able to in over three decades, so I didn’t exactly complain when he offered,” he says, mouth full. “Sadly it didn’t last very long, as you might have noticed.” Harry continues before swallowing, Nick’s eyes following the movement of his throat. It’s a rather lovely throat, Nick thinks, all pale and inviting.

“What happened over at the office, then? Something fun?” Harry asks.

Nick’s heart jumps and he coughs a bit on his sandwich, face heating up. Great. Subtle, really. “Not fun, exactly. The office is never fun,” he says after a while, eyes tearing up after his coughing fit.

Harry is frowning slightly when Nick looks at him. “Oh, okay. What did you do then?”

“Just talked to the boss, really. Nothing major.” Nick’s heart is beating fast, and he busies himself with walking to the counter and making tea. It’s not at all how Nick wanted it to play out. This is not how he wanted to tell Harry. Not yet.

“I can tell you’re lying, Nick. Your heart,” Harry says behind him, voice strained and forced. “What happened?”

Nick takes a deep breath before turning around again. Harry is facing him already, must have risen from the chair without Nick hearing it. Harry watches Nick, wide eyes with eyebrows pulled into a frown. He is biting his lip slightly, looking pleading but determined, almost like he’s ready to cry any minute but fixed on not showing it. Nick must be the worst liar ever.

“I talked to Louis, our team leader. He wanted me to, um. Just bring you in, really.” Nick pauses, hoping he won’t have to continue furthermore, hoping that Harry will understand. He doesn’t. “He threatened with sending out the entire team to find you if I don’t succeed by tomorrow night.”

Harry doesn’t say anything for a while, just staring at Nick and nodding to himself.

“I’m sorry, Harry. There’s nothing I can do.”

Harry keeps nodding, and Nick’s chest aches for him. He doesn’t want to say _‘an order is an order’_ , like he usually would. It seems too harsh on Harry, and Nick doesn’t want that for him.

“I’ve still got until tomorrow night, though, right?” Harry says after a long minute of silence between them. His voice cracks a bit, but his face is still dead serious.

“Probably until the morning after that as well. Louis can’t send them out until he’s sure I’ve failed my mission.”

Harry gapes. “You’re not going to do it?” His eyes go from stern to hopeful, shoulders straightening up a bit.

Nick shrugs lightly. “Not unless you give me a reason to,” he says, biting his lip to keep himself from laughing at how relieved Harry looks. Before he can grasp what happens, Harry has him embraced in a tight hug, breathing into Nick’s neck. It would probably ruin the moment if Nick said how much he loves when Harry does that, so he keeps it to himself.

“Thank you, Nick. Thank you so much,” Harry mumbles just underneath Nick’s ear, sending a shiver through his body.

-

When Nick wakes up the next morning, Harry is already awake and watching him, smiling when Nick opens his eyes, dimples on full display. “Good morning. Or should I say afternoon?”

Nick groans and rolls over to his back, looking up at the ceiling. “Shut up, it’s not afternoon, you menace.” He looks over at Harry, who is still observing him with a small smirk. “And don’t stare at me like that when I’m asleep, Edward Cullen. We’re not in bloody _Twilight_.”

That makes Harry laugh, the familiar, deep rustling coming from his lungs. Nick can feel himself grinning, loves the way Harry’s eyes crinkle so prettily when Nick makes him laugh. “I consider myself more Emmett, though, don’t you think?”

“Shush, you. Not at all. He’s intimidating, dangerous, frightening, aggressive, muscular-”

“Hey!”

“-and terribly, terribly pretty.”

“Stop that!” Harry giggles, pushing Nick away playfully. “I’m very intimidating and dangerous and muscular and pretty,” he says, serious, before laughing again.

“Whatever helps you sleep at night, darling,” Nick teases, patting Harry’s nose softly with his fingertip. Harry goes cross eyed when following the movement, and it’s so horribly endearing Nick has to bite his lip to stop himself from cooing at Harry.

When Nick pulls back his hand, Harry’s eyes flicker from Nick’s down to his mouth, before moving back up. He looks like he wants to say something, but doesn't for long while. Instead, he bites his lip and moves his eyes all over Nick's face, studying him.

“Have you ever kissed a vampire?” Harry asks, finally meeting Nick's eyes.

“No. Never.”

“Have you ever thought about kissing a vampire?”

Nick snorts. “No, can't really say I have.” _Not until I met you_ , he doesn't say.

Harry's eyes once again drift down to Nick's mouth. “Would you wanna try?”

Nick doesn't have to answer; he lets out a short breath and before he knows it, Harry is kissing him. His lips are cold, just like the rest of him, but so incredibly _soft_. They feel good, like the first touch of feather light snow in the winter, almost melting against Nick's lips. It's not long before Harry pulls back, a quiet whimper leaving his throat.

Nick is having none of it though. He cups Harry's jaw in his hand, bringing their lips back together. Nick deepens the kiss by pushing his tongue past Harry's lips, happily greeted by a warm, wet mouth. An almost sinful groan leaves Harry's mouth, vibrating against Nick's.

“Nick,” Harry whispers, their lips still touching. He grabs the collar of Nick’s t-shirt and pulls him on top, limbs tangling with each other. “Don’t stop.”

Nick isn’t sure what he’s referring to, but doesn’t bother asking. Instead, he trails kisses down Harry’s jaw and throat, hand gripping his bony yet soft hip. Harry stretches his neck, giving Nick more space to kiss and explore. When Nick has reached the bottom of Harry’s throat, nibbling on the skin above his collarbones, Harry moves to pull his shirt off. He accidently elbows Nick on his nose, and he’s just about to complain when Harry reveals tattoo after tattoo, spread out over his chest and stomach.

Nick is pretty sure he’s gaping at Harry, taking in the sight, because Harry outright giggles at him. He can’t bring himself to care though, Harry is _beautiful_. There are so many of them, everywhere. He’s got a butterfly above his navel, two birds just underneath his collarbones, various ones on his arm - which he’s seen before but never thought about - and tiny, tiny letters on both his shoulders.

Nick’s eyes stick to one particular set of tattoos, though; two magnificent leaves on both sides of his hips, framing his toned stomach. Nick touches the skin gently and Harry stops laughing, sucking in a harsh breath. Nick meets Harry’s eyes to look for any kind of protest, but finds none, so he continues to stroke the ink.

“Please,” Harry breathes, back arching. “Go on.”

Nick doesn’t want to _go on_ , though, he wants to continue touching Harry’s tattoos, maybe even kiss and lick them for a while. To be honest, Nick wants to kiss and lick every part of Harry’s body, but he settles for his lips for now; kissing him deeply as he thumbs over the leaves. Harry moans shamelessly loudly, sucking on Nick’s tongue as if he’s been starved of it. He grinds his hips up against Nick’s, probably feeling how hard Nick is, and Nick groans into Harry’s mouth.

After grinding their clothed dicks together a few times, Harry rolls them over so that he’s on top. He tugs on Nick’s shirt, looking at it disapprovingly. “Off,” he says, pouting slightly. Nick pulls off his shirt, feeling just the smallest bit self-conscious about his little tummy next to Harry’s defined abs.

Harry doesn’t seem bothered though; he threads his fingers through Nick’s chest hair, kissing his jaw. It feels good, almost tickles. Harry keeps on leaving a small trail of kisses down Nick’s throat and collarbones, and goes to suck on one of his nipples. The new sensation makes Nick shiver, a spark of electricity going right to his cock, and stays there. Harry bites the nipple gently, before licking it and continuing to the next one, sucking and nibbling on that one as well.

Harry moves one of his hands from Nick’s chest to tug at the waistband of his pants, trying to get them off. Nick gets the idea and helps Harry by raising his hips in the air, making it easier for Harry to slide them off. Harry removes his own briefs in the process, careful not to knee Nick in the groin. Harry meets Nick in a kiss as he wraps his hand around Nick’s cock, making him cry out as he gives it a few dry strokes before gathering the precome at the tip to smear over the crown. It feels amazing, Harry’s almost warm hand gripping his dick firmly, just the way he likes it.

Harry is grinding his cock against Nick’s inner thigh, but Nick wants to _touch_ , so he blindly reaches down to grab for Harry’s dick, finding it almost immediately. It feels huge in his hand, so hard and warmer than any part of Harry he has touched before. He gives it a slow, tight stroke, mostly dry, and Harry lets out a high whimper, slumping against Nick’s chest.

“Again,” he breathes, head coming to rest on Nick’s collarbone. Nick drags his hand upwards on Harry’s dick which makes him moan aloud, hand faltering on Nick’s cock. It’s dry on both of them now, so Nick rolls them over again and reaches for the lube in the nightside table. He opens the cap with a noisy _‘click’_ sound, and pours some wet liquid into his hand, wrapping it around both of their cocks.

They groan out loudly in unison, both of them trying to fuck into Nick’s fist. The lube is cold but it doesn’t bother Nick as much as it probably should, cold boy with cold hands under him, touching him. Nick seeks out Harry’s mouth as he speeds up, stroking with more confidence now.

Harry is writhing underneath Nick, shaking and arching his back so prettily. Nick doesn’t want to stop kissing him, but he is feeling lightheaded with the lack of oxygen, and probably blood, in his brain.

“Feels good, love?” Nick asks as he pulls away to breathe, resting his head in the crook of Harry’s neck. He breathes in the scent of sweat and boy, gathering on the skin.

“Yeah, it’s- fuck. Don’t stop,” Harry breathes, moving his hips in sync with Nick’s hand. “I wanna make you come.”

Nick snorts. It’s not far away, really. It makes him feel stupidly young, even if he’s wanking off someone who’s lived through more than an entire century.

Harry knows what he wants, though. He slaps Nick’s hand away from his cock and wraps his own hand around it, jerking it fast and tight. Nick can’t help the moan that escapes his throat, but grips Harry’s cock nonetheless, stroking it as quickly and firmly as Harry does on Nick.

They wank each other off, panting into each other’s mouths, until Harry’s body goes tight, muscles clenching. “Fucking- _shit_. I’m gonna come, Nick. Fuck, I’m gonna-,” he gasps, not even able to finish his sentence before he shoots off, come landing all over his chest and Nick’s hand. Nick works him through it, going slower and slower until Harry whimpers from sensitivity and he lets go.

Harry’s hand speeds up on Nick’s cock, after stuttering in rhythm as he came. He’s got a more determined grip now, eyes on Nick as he works him towards the edge. It’s all so horribly filthy; the smell of come drying on Harry’s stomach, the small moans coming from Harry’s mouth and the heavy eye contact as the familiar coiling gatherers deep in his belly.

“I’m close,” Nick pants, barely able to hold himself up over Harry.

“Nick,” Harry whispers, and that’s all he needs to tip over the edge, spilling over Harry’s hand and stomach. It’s probably rude to come on someone without asking, but Nick can’t be bothered to care. Not when Harry is stroking him leisurely, whispering encouragements into his ear while looking all sweaty and content.

Nick collapses on Harry’s chest as soon as he’s done coming. His heart is beating rapidly, and if he didn’t know better, he's pretty sure he's imagining Harry's racing as well.

 

 

They’re not very productive for the rest of the day, mostly just watching telly and eating snacks Nick didn’t even know he had. When the sun is beginning to fall and they’ve had nothing but a breakfast toast and crisps all day, Harry decides that they’re going to cook an actual proper meal with actual salads and dressing and sauce.

Like most of the time though, Nick’s refrigerator is very empty which gives them a very small, limited choice of meals to make, but Harry is determined. He picks out all the ingredients from Nick’s fridge and puts them on the counter, as well as every single pan and pot in Nick’s flat.

“What’re we making?” Nick asks, walking up behind Harry to peer over his shoulder.

“Pasta with celery and asparagus, I think,” Harry says, counting the eggs.

Nick groans. “Blergh. I don’t know why I keep buying celery. It’s disgusting.”

“It’s not that bad. Oh, and hey. Could you ask the neighbor if we may borrow some cream? You’ve only got milk.”

“What? No!” Nick exclaims. “Milk works, doesn’t it?”

Harry shrugs. “It’s more tasty with cream. Doesn’t get all floaty like milk.”

“Then use the eggs instead. They’re binding and all,” Nick says, receiving a stare from Harry who just shakes his head. Nick might be smiling.

They fall into silence after that; Harry blending the eggs and milk while Nick takes the initiative to chop the celery. Harry hums along to the radio, shaking his hips to the melody. It looks ridiculous, as he’s only wearing a pair of Nick’s old joggers.

Meanwhile Nick is too busy watching Harry dancing as he puts the asparagus on boil, he doesn’t notice how much of the celery he’s chopped. His finger stings and he hisses, dropping the knife on the counter. It’s a small cut, not very deep, but enough for it to draw blood and trickle down the length of his finger. He goes to wash it off in the sink, when he meets Harry’s panicked face.

Harry swallows loudly, eyes flickering from Nick’s face to his finger as his throat moves. “Nick,” he breathes, almost inaudible. Nick doesn’t know what to say, doesn’t know what to do. Harry takes a step forward, eyes now fixed on Nick’s wound, and Nick prepares himself for potential defense fight. Harry reaches out to touch, but must have realised what he was doing, because he shakes his head and backs off, breathing deeply.

“Fuck, I’m-. I’ll be right back. Need, uh, air,” Harry says, walking out of the kitchen and into the lounge before opening the door to the balcony. “Make sure the, fuck, the asparagus doesn’t over cook,” he yells behind him.

Nick stays in the kitchen, stunned. The blood from his finger has begun to drip onto the floor; Nick grabs a cloth and wets it slightly, scrubbing the blood off. He puts a plaster on the cut and goes back to chopping the celery. He checks on the asparagus before draining the water into the sink, steam blurring his vision.

As Nick waits for the pasta to boil, he can’t help but feeling like an utter idiot. Could it possibly be more cliché than to slip with the knife - _in front of a bloody vampire?_ Nick wants to laugh at possibly every life choice he’s ever made, which he ends up doing anyway, chuckling into the palm of his hand. Harry picks the exact moment to enter the kitchen, frowning at Nick where he’s bent over the kitchen island, gasping for air.

“What’s so funny?” Harry asks, not sounding the tiniest bit amused.

Nick takes a deep breath to calm himself down. “I’m sorry. I just, nothing. Sorry,” he says. Harry nods slowly, obviously not convinced, and moves to turn the stove off. He drains the water from the pasta and pours all the ingredients into one pot. Nick reaches for the plates in the cupboard and pulls out knives and forks for them both, setting the table.

They eat in silence, which probably should be more comfortable than it is. Nick has never had any problems with speechlessness between them before, since Harry isn’t really a chatty person. This silence though, is filled with tension and awkwardness, something Nick just can’t stand.

He tries to start a conversation several times, asking Harry what he wants to do later, talking about the first time he ate celery as a kid, but only gets one-worded answers from Harry. He gives up in the end; if Harry wants to sulk then so be it.

They clear the table together, Nick taking care of rinsing their plates while Harry puts away the leftovers into the fridge. Nick thinks about Harry’s reaction, how horrified he had looked, the way he just stormed out of the kitchen. Nick also thinks about how Harry had shaken himself out of it, how he regained the control of his instincts.

Nick turns to Harry, taking a deep breath. “I haven’t had my vervain dose in a while,” he trails off, drumming his fingers against the counter.

“Well, that’s stupid of you,” Harry answers dryly, not looking at Nick. Nick rolls his eyes and tries again, hoping he’ll get what Nick’s trying to say.

“That pasta can’t really be that satisfying though, right?” Nick says, lowering his voice as he takes a careful step closer to where Harry is standing. “You must be starving.”

Harry drops the spoon he’s been using to put the pasta into a plastic jar forcefully, looking properly annoyed. “Seriously, Nick? You’re going there?”

“Yeah, maybe I am.”

“Well, maybe you shouldn’t.”

“What if I want to?”

“Then you should reconsider.”

“I’m not going to.”

“Well, that’s just stupid.”

“Maybe you’re stupid.”

“I’m not - fuck, Nick. What?”

“Well, I don’t know.”

Harry stares at him, all frowny and confused. “Well, neither do I. Wait, no stop. What are you even talking about?”

Nick has to think for a moment. He lost his train of thought when Harry started answering with his clever remarks. Oh, wait - right.

“I want you to feed off me.”

Harry raises his eyebrows, gaping slightly. His eyes moves to Nick’s finger, before quickly moving back up. He bites his lip and takes a step back as Nick steps forward, keeping their distance. “I don’t think that’s a good idea,” he says.

 _Perhaps not_ , Nick doesn’t say, which is probably the truth. “I want you to, though,” he says, which is the _actual_ truth. He doesn’t break eye contact with Harry once, as he takes another step forward, this time actually getting closer to Harry. He looks very uncertain, like he’s going to flee the room any second, but Nick is determined not to let him.

When he’s close enough, he cups Harry cheek and leans in to kiss him. It’s just a light, chaste kiss, but it makes Nick’s stomach flip with excitement. Harry grabs Nick’s hip, pressing his body closer to Nick. They pull away from the kiss and Nick tilts his head slightly, offering up his neck.

“It’s okay,” he says as Harry licks his lips and looks at Nick’s neck, still clearly trying to hold off. “I trust you.”

With one last look into Nick’s eyes, Harry slowly leans forward, fangs coming out of his teeth and irises changing from the familiar, shiny green colour to an angry red shade. Nick takes a deep breath and prepares himself for the worst, both in regards to the pain and the situation.

Nick knows when it’s happening a second before the bite comes, Harry exhaling warm air against Nick’s neck. The pain is instant and very, very unpleasant. Harry’s teeth goes so deep, that Nick has to shut his eyes tightly to keep them from welling up. Harry is gripping his hip so hard it’s probably going to bruise, but Nick uses it as an anchor to keep his mind off the sting in his neck.

When Harry starts sucking, Nick feels it in his entire body. It’s sort of a tickle, sting-y kind of sensation and it makes Nick shiver, goosebumps raising on his skin. It’s not particularly a good or nice feeling, it’s just feels strange, but Nick lets Harry do his thing anyway. There is not really any backing out now.

As the time goes, Nick is starting to feel more and more lightheaded and cold, vision starting to blur. He is pretty sure blood is trickling down his throat, he can feel the warm liquid moisten the collar of his shirt. He lets out a small whimper, mouth dry, and squeezes Harry’s bicep like, _please no more._

Harry jerks away immediately, panting, and Nick stumbles backwards against the counter, feeling dizzy. His heart is beating rapidly, trying to replace the blood he’s lost. He hears Harry bang around in the cupboard, registers the running sink before a glass of water is held right in front of his eyes, a cold, wet towel pressing against his neck.

“Drink,” Nick hears Harry say. He sounds distant, but still close, and by the time he’s drained the entire glass, his mind is starting to clear up. Nick sets the glass aside and looks at Harry properly for the first time. He looks mostly like normal, except from some blood running down his chin. Nick takes the cloth Harry is pressing against his throat and cleans most of the blood off, leaving a light, orange colour on his pale skin.

“You alright?” Harry asks, voice rough. He takes the towel again and presses it on the stinging wound again.

“Yeah, ‘m fine. You good, though? You look a bit pale,” Nick rasps, voice almost as thick as Harry’s.

Harry snorts and shakes his head. “Shut up, you’re horrible.”

Nick grins. He studies Harry’s eyes for a while; astonished how there is no trace whatsoever of the red glow, just the sparkling, clear green colour. Harry dabs the towel on Nick’s throat one last time before throwing it in the sink, bright red.

“We should probably put a plaster on that,” Harry says, looking at the bite with furrowed eyebrows. Nick nods and walks out of the kitchen and into the bathroom, Harry following close behind. Nick picks out the biggest plaster he’s got and hands it to Harry, who removes the plastic and secures it to his throat. “Alright?”

Nick twists his neck, feeling the plastic constrict and move against his sore skin. “Yeah. ‘S good.”

Harry smiles at that, eyes soft. He looks so innocent, not at all like he probably could kill Nick anytime, just like that, if he wanted to.

“Why did you do it?” Harry asks, smile faltering. “Is it because it’s my last night?”

Nick’s heart does an unprepared jump, aching. He hasn’t thought about that the entire day, too comfortable with Harry to realise it might be the end. “No, not at all. I don’t know, I just wanted,” Nick says. “Wanted it all, I guess.”

“It’s okay. It doesn’t matter anyway. I- thank you, Nick. I’ve never- I just,” Harry says, and he doesn’t really have to say anything more. Nick gets it. “Thank you.”

When Nick smiles, he hopes Harry will get it as well.

-

Nick twists and turns almost the entire night after that, not being able to relax, his mind racing. He gives up around six AM and decides to go for a shower, hoping he’ll figure something out in there. He pads into the bathroom as quietly as possible and pulls off his t-shirt, pants and plaster, leaving them on the floor for now.

He showers cold and long, just standing under the spray and trying to think of something smart to do. He could just take Harry with him and leave town, maybe the country, but they don’t have enough time for that. Also, the IACS would always find them, no matter what country they’d go to. Nick can’t spend his life being a chasee, not after being the chaser pretty much his whole life. He needs to stop the team, that’s for sure, but he just doesn’t know how.

He turns the water off and grabs a towel, slinging it around his hips. He grabs another towel to dry his hair out, shaking it furiously. He looks into the mirror, eyes going straight to the two circles on his neck. He picks out another plaster and puts it right over the bite before walking out of the bathroom.

Harry is still asleep when Nick gets dressed, face looking fully relaxed and hair terribly soft. Nick wants to touch it, always does, but he’s afraid he might wake Harry up, so he resists the urge. He writes a small note - _at the office x N_ \- just like last time, and puts it on his pillow. He grabs his scarf and heads out of the bedroom, closing the door after him.

 

 

When he arrives at the office, the clock has just passed seven AM, and the entire team is sitting by the tea table, drinking their morning tea and coffees. Sophia is sitting in Liam’s lap, giggling into his neck, Leigh-Anne, Jesy and Niall seems to be in a deep conversation, as well as Zayn and Perrie, looking awfully pretty. They barely notice that Nick is there, until Louis spots him and grins.

“Nicholas! Just in time for tea,” he says, raising his arms in the air. He peers behind Nick, frowning slightly. “Where’s our little vampire friend, though? Won’t he take a step forward for us? Is he shy?”

Nick swallows. The entire team is now looking on him, and it’s making him nervous for some reason. “Harry’s not here,” he says, quiet.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Louis says and raises an eyebrow in challenge. “What did you just say?”

Nick rolls his eyes. Honestly, Louis sounds like he’s come right out of a bad nineties girls movie, where the drama is just about to step up. “I said Harry’s not here,” Nick repeats, firmer this time.

Louis narrows his eyes at Nick. “Well, it seems like we’re going out on a vampire hunt today, ladies and gentlemen,” he says, shrugging as if it’s nothing. Nick can basically feel Louis’ blood boiling though, all the way to where he is standing.

“No, you’re not,” Nick replies, trying to sound confident, but sounding way too hesitant to his own ears. It reflects the situation pretty well, Nick thinks.

“Why would that be, then?” Louis asks, sounding more and more annoyed.

“Because, uh, I’m quitting,” Nick says, still not quite as confident as he’d like. “And you’re going to leave Harry alone, got it?”

Several confused _‘what?’_ s come from the team, including from Louis, and Nick almost immediately regrets his choice of words. He’s not going to change his mind, though, no way.

“Are you fucking kidding me, Nick? You’ve been here longer than any of us, are you just going to throw that away? For a bloody vampire? _Who you just met,_ by the way?” Louis exclaims, angry now.

“Hold on a minute now, both of you. Are you sure about this, Nick?” Zayn asks, drawing the team’s attention away from Nick and Louis.

“Yes, I am,” Nick says, which is beginning to become the truth. The more he thinks about it, the more it makes sense. He doesn’t want to do this anymore, not when he knows that Harry might end up hurt by it.

“But why d- wait what’s that?” Louis says, leaning over the table, squinting his eyes. “Is that- a plaster?”

Nick’s hand immediately goes to cover up the patch on his neck with his scarf, face burning. He doesn’t know what to reply, so he stays quiet, biting the inside of his cheek.

“Did he _bite_ you, Nick?” Louis says, voice raising. “Are you not on _vervain?_ ”

“Nick, you might be compelled. You don’t know,” Zayn says, a lot more calmer than Louis.

“He only bit me because I asked him to!” Nick yells, face getting even hotter. “And I did it because I think I’m in love with him, okay?”

Which is. Yeah. Nick hadn’t realised until the exact moment he says it, but _fuck_. He might be in love with Harry. He might fucking be in love with Harry.

Everyone is quiet for a long time after that, almost gaping at him. They exchange looks with each other, looking both surprised, and a little worried if Nick’s not mistaken.

Louis is the first one to speak up, clearing his throat. “I, uh. I’m sorry, Nick. I didn’t know-”

“Didn’t know what? That I could be in love?” Nick huffs out a laugh, shaking his head. “Fuck, neither did I. Yet here I am. Strange how things can turn around, innit?”

Neither of them say anything, minutes of dead silence, but Nick is pretty sure he can see a smile spreading on Jesy’s face, nodding at him. “Well, if that’s what you want, love, we’ll help you pack your stuff,” she says, getting up from her chair. She walks around the table and embraces Nick in a tight hug, careful not to rest her head on the sore side of Nick’s throat. “Don’t mind him, babe. We want you to be happy, all of us,” she whispers into his neck, and Nick has the sudden urge to cry, biting his lip to stop the sob that wants to escape his throat.

When they break apart, Jesy pats his cheek like his grandma used to do when he was a kid, walking over to his desk. Nick follows, trying to ignore eye contact with Louis, face probably as red as a tomato.

They pack mostly in silence, Zayn joining them after a while. They find things Nick hasn’t seen in years, for example a journal Nick had used to note all the missions he’d done and the creatures he’d met when he first started, a mere fourteen years old. Nick remembers them all, remembers how exciting everything was back then, almost feeling like a hero saving the world.

“So, I’m guessing that wasn’t your cousin’s son then, was it?” Jesy says, voice light and teasing. Nick huffs out a laugh as he puts a pair of socks lying in his drawer for some reason, into the box with his other stuff.

“No, it wasn’t.”

Jesy whistles. “Not bad, Grimshaw. Well done,” she laughs, winking.

“So what are you going to do now?” Zayn asks, reaching for papers on the top shelf.

And, well. Nick hasn’t really thought about it. He wants something more calm, something where he won’t have to stress or do actual physical work. “I dunno. Might open my own music shop. You know, the ones with old vinyls and CDs. Always loved a good vinyl, me.”

“That sounds great, mate. We’ll come visit, promise,” Zayn smiles.

Nick replies with a smile, closing the box of stuff, sealing it with some tape. Jesy helps him carry it as he hugs everyone in the team goodbye, even Sophia, although they still barely introduced themselves. Louis is in his office, clearly not interested in saying goodbye, so Nick just waves him off with a two fingered salute, trying not to feel bothered.

Nick is just about to leave, taking the box from Jesy’s arm and turning towards the door, when he hears a door closing, a voice coming from behind.

“Ah, what the hell. Nick, wait,” Louis says, and Nick stops, a smirk growing on his lips. “Come here, you utter berk.”

Nick laughs, putting the box on the ground before hugging Louis. It’s strange, probably the most affectionate moment they’ve ever had since they started working together, almost ten years ago. The hug doesn’t last long, because _grr_ , lads and that, but it’s a hug nonetheless, so Nick counts it as a win.

When they break apart, Louis pats Nick on the back, saying, “You know, if you want to come back some day, or just pay a visit, we won’t hate you, promise. Don’t be a stranger, Nicholas.”

Nick smiles, and pats Louis right back. “No worries, chief, will do.”

“Take care, yeah?” Louis says, eyes soft. “We’ll miss you.”

“You too.”

 

 

Nick leaves the office with a rather good feeling, which he didn’t expect at all when he got there earlier. He grabs the closest cab, telling his address as he crawls into the backseat. The traffic is busy, just about the time when most people go to work. When the car comes to a stop just outside his flat, he pulls out a ten from his wallet, telling the driver to keep the change.

Nick unlocks his door, putting the box on the floor as he kicks off his shoes. “Harry!” he yells, walking into the empty kitchen and taking off his jacket. He hangs it on a chair and pours water into the kettle, putting it on for later.

“Harry!” he repeats, walking out of the kitchen and into the lounge. It’s also empty, making Nick frown. He must be in bed, then, the lazy fucker.

“Harry?” Nick says, peering into the bedroom. The room is empty, no sight of Harry whatsoever. The sheets on the bed are ruffled, pulled back as if there was a hurry. The note Nick wrote is lying on the floor and he goes to pick it up.

It looks exactly the same like when Nick left it on the pillow, just a little bit more scrunched up. Nick listens if there is any sound of water running, in case Harry is having a shower, but no, nothing. “ _Harry?_ ”  Nick calls out again, heart speeding up.

Nick walks out of the bedroom and checks the guest room, which also turns out to be empty, when it hits him. He left. _Of course_ he left. Of bloody course. He knew the team would come for him, so why would he not? Hell, Nick would probably have done the same.

“Fuck,” Nick curses out loud. He’s so fucking fucked. God, he should just have woken Harry up and brought him with to the office. He would have been safe, and he would have been here. Nick has no idea what he’s supposed to do now, it’s not like he can go back to the office and be like _‘Oh hi again! So, I was just kidding before, totes fun, right? I’d like to stay, by the way’_. No, that’s not going to happen. He needs Harry, and he needs him _now_. God, he just want-

Nick loses his train of thought as the wardrobe in the guest room opens, a loud shriek leaving his lungs. A tall shadow walks out, and Nick takes a breath of relief, the familiar silhouette revealing himself.

“Nick? You alright?”

“Oh god, you bloody, fucking idiot!” Nick breathes, holding a hand over his racing heart. “Do that _one more time_ , and I’ll fry you alive with some celery on top and then feed you to the fucking ducks, you absolute prick.”

Harry barks out a laugh, much to Nick’s annoyance, and walks out of the room. Nick follows of course, because apparently, Harry wants to avoid the elephant in the room. “What were you even _doing_ in that wardrobe? Hiding or something?”

“I dunno,” Harry says, shrugging. “I thought you might had changed your mind and were helping the team to find me.”

Nick stops in his track. “I’m sorry?”

Harry shrugs again, disappearing into the main bedroom. Nick stays in the doorway, watching Harry fondly as he gets dressed in the outfit he wore when he got here the first time, drunk and homeless. Which was, wow, only two days ago; it feels like two months for Nick.

“So, um. I guess I should head out before you end up in trouble. Tracker and all,” Harry says, pointing to where Nick had fastened the chip behind his ear the first time they met. “Thanks for, uh, everything,” he continues, voice sounding thick, sniffling.

“Harry,” Nick starts, stomach doing a flippy thing. Harry’s so stupid, even when he’s smart and Nick loves that about him so deeply. “Do you know what I did at the office?”

Harry frowns at him. “No.”

Nick grins. “Do _want_ to know what I did at the office?”

“Stop it, Nick. You’re making me nervous.”

Nick walks up to Harry, standing in the middle of the room. He puts a loose curl behind Harry’s ear, cupping his cheek. He’s so stupidly pretty; long dark lashes, strong jaw and lovely cheekbones. Nick can’t help but stroke his cheek, cold and soft skin under his thumb.

“You don’t have to worry about the team. They’re not a problem anymore.”

Harry’s eyes go comically wide, mouth dropping. It looks ridiculous, but Harry manages to pull that off as well, the tosser. “Fuck, Nick. What did you do?”

“I resigned my spot at the IACS and told them to stay away from us.” Nick says, barely able to keep the smile off his face. “You’re not going anywhere.”

Harry blinks a few times, eyes still wide and confused. “You _what?_ ”

“I quit, finished, done,” Nick says. “They promised to leave us alone as well. No more hiding in the wardrobes, alright?”

That makes Harry laugh, and Nick feels himself relax at the familiarity of the sound. He leans down to plant a small kiss on Harry’s forehead, feeling him slump a little against Nick. “Don’t go, okay? Please, stay.”

Harry smiles, leaning up to finally kiss Nick on his lips. “I'm not going anywhere.”

 

**Author's Note:**

> OBS OBS, there are mentions of blood throughout the entire fic!! one particular scene, the 10th, is very detailed. if this makes you uncomfortable or triggers you in any way, please please, don't read!! there are also tiny mentions of minor character death. be safe, always. x
> 
> I imagine the office looking something like [this](https://33.media.tumblr.com/973356a2c652f8e55ab5cdadbb6fb42d/tumblr_ne7dhisxSw1tl6mjro1_500.jpg)
> 
> title is from this is halloween - marilyn manson because, yay halloween


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